[Resolution on the Crisis of
Climate Change passed at the CCDS 2009 convention.]

On the need for an Eco-socialist
perspective and leadership to prevent Catastrophic Climate Change.

Whereas CCDS’s Founding statement spells out many of the
current facts on the dangers of climate change and the interrelated social,
political and economic factors, it does not yet present an actionable position
toward climate change or the issue of eco-socialism

Whereas CCDS members have been discussing what to do
about climate change for years, made and passed proposals and held a successful
“West Coast Regional Conference on the ecological crisis from an Eco-Socialist
perspective” and yet CCDS still does not have a politically useful position on
the environment, climate change or what to do about the potential of
catastrophic climate changes

Whereas it is clear that the quality of life for the
whole world’s people’s is effected by the interrelations between economic
crises, political and military conflicts and climate change

Whereas unfortunately humankind has found it
difficult to anticipate and prevent such crises or their consequences

Whereas the current climate change process is
historically unique in that major changes are imminent, likely to be irreversible,
and could add to or accelerate even more drastic changes

Whereas virtually all scientists now agree that any
success in preventing or even moderating climate change outcomes will require
major worldwide and coordinated changes in energy production and use and any
ameliorative efforts must take place before relevant tipping points are
breached

Whereas the current world leaders’ national and
economic allegiances, are unlikely to unite around a successful environmental
plan without major public pressure

Whereas major national, economic, political and
military interests will resist cooperative efforts, preferring the risk of
allowing others to bare the burden of climate change devastation and that these
will fall most destructively on the poor countries and vulnerable peoples

Whereas the necessary efforts and sacrifices for a
successful environmental world plan will require mass support on a world scale
which can only be organized if the public is adequately informed of not only
the specific and personal nature of the threats we each face, but also provided
with believable and supportable plans that makes the public’s motivated and
involvement possible

Whereas the people of the world, threatened with
catastrophic climate changes dare not rely on the very leadership of the market
and corporate forces whose institutional greed and indifference blindly brought
us this crisis. By their nature, they will not act sufficiently or in time to
prevent or even lessen the escalating damages to the majority of the world

Whereas the general environmental movement does see
and critiques the damage done to our ecosystem by unrestrained capitalism, but
it is not yet calling for a political or economic socialist response. Instead
it is seeks to educate for improvements within the current economic systems
that will slow down “global warming” and prepare for the changes that are seen
as inevitable. While their sense of urgency and awareness of the looming crisis
is increasing, they as yet are not calling for a worldwide plan or implementation
of the changes to our political and economic systems that would be required to
give us the best chance at thwarting the worst of the potential climate change
outcomes. Further, this compromise position accepts suffering and death of
millions

Whereas Eco-socialism approaches climate change from
almost the opposite moral and scientific direction. A socialist approach
requires both a comprehensive understanding of the political-economic causes of
climate change and most importantly, a socialist based perspective on what
should be done. A perspective that values all people equally and rejects the
idea that some have more rights to survive climate change that others

Whereas the primary resistance to a successful
environmental program will come from the nuclear military industrial fossil
fuel complex ("MIC" for short) that President Dwight Eisenhower
identified 60 years ago as the great burden on humanity. Therefore avoidance of
C3 requires the end of oil and fossil fuel addiction, giving up the nuclear
option and a rapid conversion to a high efficiency solar energy infrastructure.
Since the major obstacle to this path is MIC, especially its U.S. component,
this complex and its imperial agenda must be confronted, isolated, and finally
eliminated as the biggest threat to human survival. More precisely, its
material infrastructure should be solarized, with containment of its huge
legacy of chemical and nuclear waste. A solarized and demilitarized world, a
formidable challenge to say the least! Achievable only with a socialized or
socialist approach

Whereas instead, leadership must be driven by a world
wide, mass movement that understands the need for a comprehensive, crash
program and is capable of requiring governments and industry refocus national
and global priorities for the sake of saving human life on earth, even if it
means reducing obscene short term corporate profits. The priorities of this
program must be both the immediate needs of the people most affected by the
crisis and the prevention of permanent climate changes before irreversible
tipping points are reached

Therefore it is proposed that CCDS resolve:

CCDS asserts that a successful “What Is to be Done”
for a climate change plan requires a socialist point of view. This
eco-socialist perspective means a realistic, scientific and humanistic based
analysis of environmental changes, the related economics and political issues
and the consequences of addressing these factors all based on the interests of
the majority of the world’s people. To obtain this plan will require a mass
based demand on the current world leadership, both those in power and those
controlling the resources. This leadership must be required to truthfully
inform people of the specific dangers and likely time lines of climate change
and the science based realities of effectively countering climate changes. This
leadership must also quickly develop and implement a global plan based on
preventing as much as possible of the damages from climate change and all in
the interests of the majority of the people of the world.

That CCDS’s What Is to be Done on climate change calls
for all progressives to demand that world leadership create and implement a
plan to address climate change with effective and responsible actions on behalf
of the people and planet. CCDS supports an approach that is in the interest
of the majority of the people and that aims to prevent catastrophic
consequences rather than leaving people to suffer consequences such as they did
after Katrina and elsewhere. This call is offered as a rational and humane
response working toward the best possible solutions to the damages caused by
global capitalism to the environment and in the people’s long term interests.
This call is based on the recognition that socialists everywhere have a role to
play that is specific and unique in calling for world leadership as quickly as
possible to create and put forward a workable plan based on the science of
tipping points and time lines and the political economic factors involved.

That CCDS asserts that a socialist response to climate
change is a necessary component if we are to be at all successful in combating
the damages of climate change.

[This proposal was introduced by Walter Teague on behalf of
the Metro DC CCDS chapter.